Host applications offer to users access to other applications available on a computer network. For example, a sports team organization might maintain its host application that allows attendees at a sporting event to access concessions services through a separate specialized concessions application in the form of an external (e.g., third-party maintained) native application. One objective in such an arrangement is to provide user access to an external native application, but this presents a challenge of organizing the efforts of separate application developers in a way that maintains a consistent user experience associated with the host application. The following is an example of a conventional solution formulated to attempt to meet this objective in an implementation of a vehicle parking fee payment and collection management system.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing, as an example, a conventional solution 10 that entails use of a link 12 from a host application 14 to open a native application 16 of a vehicle parking fee payment and collection management service provider (hereafter, parking fee management provider). Native application 16 is developed to specifically match the look and feel of host application 14 while providing access to services that are not available in host application 14. Thus, host application 14 in the form of a website or other application is presented on a user's mobile or smart device 18, typically a smartphone, and provides the user with a unique identifier (UID) to access native application 16. The user has to first download native application 16 to smartphone 18 and thereafter open native application 16 each time it is used.
A parking fee management provider server 24 is linked by a network connection 26 and a smart object 28. (The parking fee management provider is sometimes referred to as “Citifyd” in the description and drawings.) Smart objects are physical devices, vehicles, buildings, and other items embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity that enable the objects to collect and exchange data. Smart object 28 is a sensor in the form of a beacon that is linked by a short-range wireless connection 30 to native application 16 operating on smartphone 18. In this example, parking fee management provider server 24 and beacon 28 are components of the vehicle parking fee payment and collection management system.